African-American lawmakers surprised by redistricting suit

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) _ A lawsuit seeking to redraw Virginia House district boundaries has surprised and sparked concern among some of the Democratic African-American lawmakers. A suit filed in December by a law firm with ties to the Democratic Party argues that state Republicans illegally packed black voters into a dozen House districts when it drew new district lines in 2011. But many of the African-American lawmakers who represent those districts say they weren’t consulted about the lawsuit before it was filed. Redistricting has been a hot topic in Virginia, a purple state where Democrats hold all the state-level elected offices but Republicans have sizeable majorities in both the state’s Congressional delegation and in the House of Delegates.